Whether Genius be born, or acquired?

THOSE who hold the doctrine of “ Poeta nafcitur," conceive human nature as confifting of two parts, matter and spirit; and although each of these acts upon the other, yet that they are two distinct things; for the body may be excited to action by fenfation only, and the foul may perform all its functions while the body remains perfectly at rest.

By extending this principle, they say, that the mind may be weak while the body is strong; or that the body may be emaciated by disease, while the mind poffeffes all its vigour. Hence they confirm the first idea, that body and foul are independent of each other, and that the latter may, and will remain, when the

former

former lives no more-but the certainty, or even poffibility of a separate existence, makes no part of my subject.

Admitting the point to be established, that man is a compound of a spiritual and corporeal nature, and that the two qualities, tho' united in him, are in themfelves diftinct, we feel no difficulty of affigning all intellectual faculties to the foul only. Of course, genius is a property of the foul; and, together with all other modifications of intellect, perfectly independent of the body.

Of late, it has been thought that Poeta fit. It is circumftances, fay the profeffors of this new doctrine, that determine our pursuits, our judgment, our apprehenfions, and that give genius or withhold it. A child just born may be made any thing you please-an orator, poet, painter, or musician. If you wish that son should speak like Cicero, write

your

like Homer, paint like Apelles, or compofe like Timotheus; fet the models before him which he is to imitate, keep him intent on his fubject, put his thoughts in the train they should go, and, if accidents do not interrupt their progrefs, they will proceed onward to the goal, until they fuccessfully reach it.

The philofophers of the first fect confider genius as inspiration-those of the latter, as imitation. If nature has denied you genius, fay the former, you can never attain it—if you wish to be a genius, fay the latter, the means are in your own power.

Upon the presumption that this is the true state of the queftion, we will examine whether the old or the new doctrine agrees beft with the facts which hiftory furnishes relating to men of genius, and how far our daily experience will lead us to adopt one or the other.

Since the existence of history, not more than two or three poets are recorded to be of the first clafs-perhaps only one who is univerfally allowed to be in the very first rank. Few are the painters and ftatuaries of antiquity whofe works have defcended to the prefent times. The fame may be faid of architects and profeffors of the liberal arts and sciences in general. As fame is "the univerfal paffion," all may be fuppofed to covet the enjoyment of it; but fo very few poffeffing their wifh-which is the most natural fuppofition, that the productions of genius depend upon our own power, or upon something which is beyond our command or attainment ?

If I rightly understand the modern doctrine, it afferts, that if you defire to make two children artists in the fame profeffion, and one proves deficient and and the other excellent; the difference does not arise from the children, but their

mode

mode of treatment-that certain circumstances put the good artist in the way of becoming excellent, and different circumstances prevented the other from improvement; but if you had applied the treatment which the ingenious artist received, to the other, then their talents Iwould have been reverfed. If you fay, that to the best of your ability you gave to each equal opportunities of information; you are told, that the furnishing the mind with ideas depends upon a thousand niceties, which will not admit of variation, and although your intention was good, it was not executed. As this feems to fhew that the affair is not in our own power, we may presume it to be in other hands.

In those things which depend upon precept or example, we always perceive the force of early instruction and custom. A family educated in the principles of the Church of England, or in those which

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